You get way more than just a bottle of seasoning or a package of bacon when you buy a product with a Raider Red Meats label. You buy years of collaboration, months of cultivation, days of calculation, and hours of dedication.
What started as a way to fund a teaching process has blossomed into a full-fledged auxiliary enterprise, called Raider Red Meats, which now has successful business relationships to several grocery stores and local restaurants.
The Meat Science and Muscle Biology Program of the Department of Animal and Food Sciences at Texas Tech University needed a way to supplement the cost of the comprehensive, hands-on teaching conducted in the meat science classrooms and labs. “In the beginning, we were kind of like any other meat
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Paid student assistant positions include cashiers, cooks, researchers, meat processors and fabricators. These students are the ones who prepare the products that are shipped off-campus to outside retailers. Ben Weatherly, sales manager for Raider Red Meats, said the students have more interaction with their customers than he does. “Specifically, with United, our students are the ones calling them, getting orders and delivering the orders,” said Ben. “It’s a direct relationship there.” The students who work in these positions are exposed to every aspect of a meat production operation. They learn how to do everything from harvesting an animal to delivering the finished product to the customer. This also includes packaging, sales and keeping track of profit and loss statements. “We are really offering something unique to give our students real-world experience in a working meat company,” said Tate. Student assistants are not the only ones who get to go through this remarkable learning opportunity. Certain courses offered in the Department of Animal and Food Sciences will have Tate or Ben come and visit with the class. They usually help to explain topics such as the marketing of meat products, the difference in retail cuts or the global meat